Bistoyong appointed DAR officer-in-charge

Department of Agrarian Reform Undersecretary Rosalina Bistoyong has been designated the officer-in-charge (OIC) of DAR, following the rejection of farmers’ advocate Rafael Mariano’s appointment by the Commission on Appointments (CA).

Bistoyong, a career executive service professional, has been in government service for the past 28 years. She has been with DAR as undersecretary from 2010.

Upon the instruction of President Rodrigo Duterte, Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea designated Bistoyong to “ensure the effective delivery of public service,” as stated in the Malacanang memorandum.

Bistoyong has hands-on experience in supporting the agrarian reform beneficiaries and indigenous peoples in elevating their way of life.

As undersecretary for DAR’s support services office, she has led and orchestrated numerous support services projects for agrarian reform beneficiaries. She provides policy directions for agencies involved in the delivery of support services for the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP).

She is also credited fro implementing support services for former landowners under the CARP.

“We also should help those landowners who gave up their land for our agrarian reform beneficiaries” Bistoyong said.

One of her advocacies is addressing the pressing problems brought by climate change in rural communities. So she took steps in strengthening, diversifying and enhancing agrarian reform projects in climate stricken areas.

“We in the department continue to climate-proof our agrarian reform communities to help mitigate the bad effects of climate change. Also to help our farmers adapt to it by identifying the problems they face and creating options so that steps can be taken to solve them,” Bistoyong explained.

Among her outstanding achievements are: provision of credit to agrarian reform beneficiaries and smallholder farmers though the agrarian production credit program, which facilitated the increase in membership of more than 20,000 agrarian reform beneficiaries to DAR cooperatives; assisted more than 50,000 agrarian reform beneficiaries in accessing micro-finance services for their agri-business; and provided capacity trainings in agrarian reform communities and non- agrarian reform communities.